My Name Is Raven

My name is Raven. As I sit upon my Ravenstone I ponder in my thoughts. Some consider me a bird of ill omen others a mediator between life and death. I am both the symbol of the sun, and the symbol of a moonless night.

The Scottish Highlanders, a brave and fearsome people, once associated me with the second sight and prophecy. My image flew on the banners of the pagan Danes and Viking ships as tokens of luck on their voyages. I am, however, a contradiction in terms; I am thought of a as trickster and a thief, a representation of death and doom.

While conversely others think I represent magic, creation, healing, wisdom, and protection. I am especially revered by the creative type as I was a favouite bird of the god Lludd, the Celtic god of artists and artisans. I symbolize the void - the mystery of that which is not yet known.

S mis Fitheach. My name is Raven. 

Spring is here, Spring is here!

I planted some seeds that I found in a long neglected package. I really didn't know what they were but I thought I would give them a chance to see life and grow.

I watered them and took care of them. Most of the seeds turned out to be spindly things that immediately went out into the compost to live out their lives. But one seed was special. I watered it daily, talked to it and generally took great care of it.

It grew and grew and finally a bud began to form. Each day I waited with baited breath wondering just what this little treasure would grow into. Finally one morning I came down and what should I see but this beautiful red bloom smiling back at me!

He spoke with such ease and elegance and thanked me for taking such good care of him. He reminded me we all need to take care of one another. If we do then beautiful things will come from it. Well said Red Bloom, well said.

To see more about him click HERE!

I'm Dreaming of Spring!

I've been dreaming of Spring to come early this year, but I don't think that will happen, so I've been making felted sheep instead!Silly Sheep! I can't stop them from forming cheer leading pyramids!
This is Daisy. She's a real go getter, loves long walks on the beach and strawberry ice cream! Although judging from her size she should probably lay off the ice cream! She's looking for warmer greener pastures and is also tired of these Canadian winters! I'm going to help her write up her Etsy listing latter today.
Now I'd like to introduce you to Baa Baa Black Sheep. He likes to be called Baa Baa for short. Baa Baa is also looking for a new home but he's very shy and wants me to do his Etsy write up. He loves to snuggle up in front of the fire and read a good book and he's a great listener.

This is Arabella. Arabella is very intelligent, for a sheep, and already has her listing on Etsy. You can see her profile by clicking here.

Now this poor little rabbit was so lonely that she was the only rabbit that she sneaked into my roving stash and put on a sheep's coat! I tried to convince her that it was okay to be the only rabbit, but she really loves her wool coat! Silly rabbit!

Everybody is made out of 100% wool from Briggs and Little, the oldest woolen mill in Canada that is located right here in New Brunswick!

Back to Work!

I imagine that the week between Christmas and the New Year should be an almost magical time of year. It should be spent in front of the fire with a good book, a hot drink and a cat curled up at your feet. It should be a time to reflect, and relax and plan the upcoming year. You should be able to walk about the house and admire the sparkly delights hanging from you tree, eat any food you want and just enjoy this quiet week. Screech!!! What on earth was I thinking! I have never had such a busy week as I did this past week! My DH planned a weeks vacation for this week, and vacation it wasn't! Everyday involved a new project. One day it was making a new cupboard/pantry for the kitchen, the next two days involved tearing up the old carpet in the basement and laying down new hardwood floors, there were at least two days spent going to town to buy supplies to finish said projects and another day getting groceries. Then there was company, and cooking, and taking down Christmas, oh and then yesterday was DH's birthday, so that involved a day of cooking! Ahhh, but today DH went back to work and I got to play with my new stash of yarn!

Just look what I got for a Christmas present from my mother-in-law! An entire box full of yarn! I squealed with delight when I took the top of of the box and saw all these lovelies!

Then imagine my delight when I noticed there was another layer! Lots of Briggs and Little, some lovely soy yarn (I have a flapper hat planned for those), some pink variegated yarn, and some gorgeous roving! Oh the joy, the joy!

So today, bright and early I started working on a pattern that I started before the week of ...."bliss". I'm using this "denim heather mist" by Bernat to create a pattern for a matching neckwarmer and hat .... hopefully, but you never know where the crochet hook will take you!

New Pattern - The Polar Ice Cap

I've been working on a new hat pattern but put it up to play Christmas for awhile. Today I have almost finished it! I just need to proof it a few more times and then I will list it. So at least here are some pictures of it! So I present to you: The Polar Ice Cap!

It can be made with either 2 strands of any medium or worsted weight yarn, like this red and white one. I used 100% wool in Briggs and Little for this one so that it will be nice and warm.

Or you can use the Homespun Yarn from Lion Brand for a really soft hat. They have the nicest selection of colours too.

I really like how this hat frames your face and you can actually wear your bangs out, instead of tucking them in for minimal "hat head". I also added some matching ribbons in the braids for a real personal touch.